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Over the last six months, the FTSE All Share has delivered a respectable 6% for holders of these UK shares. That’s even after the stock market threw a tantrum in early April following the announcement of US tariffs. However, despite this overall upward trajectory, not every constituent has been so fortunate.
Some of the worst-performing British stocks in 2025 include:
- Videndum (LSE:VID) – down 69%
- Mobico Group – down 66%
- Petrofac – down 65%
- Severfield – down 64%
- John Wood Group – down 52%
In many cases, when a stock sees more than half its market-cap wiped out in the space of six months, there’s cause for concern. However in some cases, a sharp drop in share price can present a lucrative buying opportunity if the underlying business is able to recover.
What’s going on at Videndum?
As a quick crash course, Videndum focuses on making specialised premium hardware and software for the content creation industry. This includes camera supports, LED lighting, robotic camera systems, and live streaming solutions used by individual content creators as well as full-blown professional production studios.
Through a combination of macroeconomic factors paired with worker strikes last year, the media & entertainment industry’s in a bit of a cyclical pickle. And the impact of this has emerged in Videndum’s financials.
While market conditions have slowly begun recovering, Videndum’s revenue stream has been on a downward trajectory since 2022. And pairing this with a series of impairment, discontinued operations, and restructuring charges, the bottom line has tumbled into the red.
To top things off, management’s warned that sales in the first half of 2025 are also likely to continue falling year-on-year. Needless to say, this isn’t what investors like to see. However, there may be a glimmer of hope.
A rebound opportunity?
The media & entertainment industry’s expected to deliver a full recovery by the end of 2026. That could be the catalyst Videndum needs to re-spark growth. At the same time, the previously-mentioned restructuring efforts are anticipated to deliver a total of £18m in annualised savings, £15m of which are expected to be realised in 2025.
Pairing this with ongoing renegotiations regarding its debt covenants, management seems to be taking the necessary steps to get back on track. So with the shares trading close to their 52-week lows, is now the time to consider buying?
Looking at the latest forecasts, Videndum certainly appears to have explosive recovery potential. In fact, one analyst has projected the stock could venture as high as 425p, a 460% potential gain from current prices. However, the group’s weakened financial position and slow recovery of its target markets definitely introduce considerable risk to an investment today.
Personally, this isn’t a tempting proposition right now. But it’s still an interesting story to watch carefully moving forward.
The other stocks on this list also have their challenges to overcome. Operational headaches and profit warnings are creating uncertainty for Mobico and Severfield. Financial restructuring issues and delayed results have resulted in Petrofac shares getting temporarily suspended, and questionable accounting practices have raised concerns for John Wood Group.
None of these is good news for shareholders. So ‘screaming buys’ they may not be. But by digging deeper, investors may uncover potentially lucrative opportunities among all the chaos.
